Foothill College Graduates First to Earn Bachelor's Degrees

Dental hygiene program is part of pilot allowing community colleges to award baccalaureates

Foothill College will celebrate an historic event June 29 when its first graduates
will receive bachelor’s degrees in dental hygiene. Foothill is one of 15 colleges throughout the state participating in a ground-breaking pilot program that allows
community colleges to confer baccalaureate degrees in technical career fields to meet
regional workforce needs.

“We are so proud of this inaugural class,” said Foothill College President Thuy Nguyen.
“They have distinguished themselves academically in an extremely rigorous program
and demonstrated great service leadership by providing care to patients and educating
children and parents about the importance of good dental hygiene, locally and globally.”

Foothill’s first cohort of graduates will enter the Bay Area job market with bachelor
of science degrees in dental hygiene at a time of strong employer demand, said Phyllis
Spragge, program director. The average pay for a dental hygienist in California was
$97,527 a year in 2017, according to the California Employment Development Department.

All students in the graduating class achieved a 100 percent pass rate on the Dental
Hygiene National Board Exam, continuing a record started by Foothill’s first dental
hygiene graduates in 1966. They will become registered dental hygienists (RDH) after
they pass the California Law and Ethics Examination and a clinical examination administered
in July.

The 23 members of Foothill’s first baccalaureate class include 15 students who are
fluent a language other than English and seven who are the first in their family to
attend college. Lydia Daniel, a first-generation college student, succeeded in the
program while raising three children under the age of 5 and is one of two students
selected to speak June 29 at the college-wide commencement ceremony.

The students will gather with their families for their own graduation celebration
shortly before the commencement ceremony begins. State Sen. Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo),
who has carried legislation to expand the baccalaureate pilot program and extend its
sunset date, will give the closing remarks at the dental hygiene ceremony.

Foothill’s dental hygiene students are among nearly 140 students statewide who are
graduating this year with bachelor’s degrees under the pilot program, which offers
place-bound students a chance to attain a baccalaureate degree in a technical career
field close to home at an affordable price.

Without Foothill’s baccalaureate program, students seeking a bachelor’s degree in
dental hygiene would have to leave the area to attend one of the four or five programs
at private and for-profit universities with tuition ranging from $40,000 to $70,000
a year. The total tuition cost for a California community college baccalaureate earned
in four years is $10,560.

In addition to classroom studies, each student in the baccalaureate cohort has logged
1,260 hours of clinical experience by the time they graduate. They treat patients
in Foothill’s Dental Hygiene Clinic and gain additional experience volunteering in
community-based dental clinics.

The 23 students have provided dental care to 516 community residents who lack dental
insurance as part of a Friday community service rotation in Santa Clara and San Mateo
counties. They also delivered oral health education at 38 off-campus sites including
local elementary schools, special needs centers, senior centers and preschools. Eight
of the students traveled last summer to rural areas of Panama where they provided
dental care to underserved families and oral hygiene education to children as part
of the Foothill College Medical/Dental Brigade.

Since the off-campus community service rotations began in 2002, Foothill College dental
hygiene students have provided dental care to 7,352 low-income community residents
who otherwise would not have received it.

As part of the pilot baccalaureate program, the college launched a separate completion track this year for licensed dental hygienists with an associate degree to earn a bachelor’s
degree. Forty students were admitted to Foothill’s first completion class and new
students can enter the program at the start of every quarter.

Spragge noted that a dental hygienist with bachelor’s degree enjoys expanded career
opportunities and can move from a dental office into fields including education, public
health, research and corporate/industry jobs.

Confirming its status as one of the top programs in the state, the California Community
College Chancellor’s office recently awarded the Foothill College Dental Hygiene Program
three Strong Workforce Gold Star Awards for increasing students’ earnings, helping
students attain a regional living wage, and successfully preparing students for employment
in their field.